BIOGRAPHY - Page 1
Paras Gavaskar was born into a life of sheer opulence. The youngest son of a wealthy Indian lawyer, the family lived in a 15th century castle in Panchajana, India. Despite this privilege, Paras had a degree of resentment towards his father's occupation. He didn't understand how he could reconcile his career with their religion's (Jainism) core tenet of respecting all life/non-violence. This alone may have had caused some inner turmoil for young Paras but his identity crisis was only compounded by his mutant powers developing. The “devout pacifist” could now turn himself into an armored “warrior.” His parents thankfully did not disown him, though they did opt to enroll him in a school abroad, the Xavier Institute, to learn to control his powers. For his mutant name, he chose the name “Indra” after the Indian god of war, a curious name for a self-proclaimed pacifist. [X-Men: Legacy (1st series) #234-238, X-Men: Legacy Annual #1]
In many ways, the Xavier Institute was like a normal (albeit rather exclusive) boarding school for the wealthy Indra. He had science class with an internationally renowned scientist, like Hank McCoy for example. [New X-Men: Academy X #7-8] The major difference, however, were the combat squads. Indra was placed in Northstar's Alpha Squadron along with five other mutant students, at least two of whom, Loa and Anole, he developed a close bond with. How exactly he fared at this time was not shown. Given his pacifism, he may have struggled with the combat exercises. Northstar was tragically killed by a Hand-possessed Wolverine a short time later, much to devastation of Indra and rest of his squad. In the aftermath, Karma assumed control of this squad. She struggled to give them adequate attention, due to her other school responsibilities. Still, as a show of good faith to the teens while they were still in mourning, Karma showed them Northstar's memorial statue before the rest of the student body. She told Alpha Squadron that, as Northstar's sister Aurora was missing, they were closest thing Northstar had to family that day. [New X-Men: Academy X #13-14]
When the Scarlet Witch uttered her infamous words “No More Mutants,” Indra's life was changed forever. He was one of a handful of mutants to retain his powers post M-Day and life was suddenly far more dangerous. [New X-Men (2nd series) #20] In the aftermath of M-Day, the squads were dissolved and the remaining students were forced to compete in a battle royale to see which 7 would still be trained by Emma Frost to become X-Men. Indra did compete, though he was incapacitated by Dust and therefore not selected. Still, he remained in the mansion for his protection and continued to be trained in the use of his powers. [New X-Men (2nd series) #23, 25]
Exactly how safe Indra and the others were with the X-Men is debatable, as several of his classmates were murdered during this time period by the Purifiers and their leader, William Stryker. Indra was one of a number of surviving students who, along with the X-Men and the families of the fallen, took part in a candlelight memorial. [New X-Men (2nd series) #32]
Life became a living hell for the X-Men's students with attack after attack. However, none were as representative of quite how bleak things had become as when
Indra and most of the remaining student body were kidnapped and taken to a literal hell dimension, Limbo. [New X-Men (2nd series) #38-39] Luckily they were freed soon after but the experience caused Indra and others to question their mortality. Despite their differing personalities, the remaining teen mutants did agree on one thing: the youngest mutant left was the most likely target of the Purifiers and therefore due an imminent death. Following a review of their birthdays, Indra realized that, at least among the X-Men's students, it was actually him. A fact that terrified him. He asked the others to stay with him to protect him. Rockslide valiantly volunteered to take the first shift. Ever the prankster, though, Rockslide couldn't resist tricking Indra into thinking there was an attack, prompting him to transform into his armored form. Realizing it was a ruse, Indra opted to simply go to bed rather than worry about his “impending” death.
He couldn't sleep, however, as he was seen among other students sitting around a fire in the X-Mansion. Rockslide came through for Indra and others, giving them a motivational speech that, despite his inelegant delivery, did seem to make Indra feel more optimistic about his future. Still, if he wasn't feeling better at that point, he was definitely smiling by the time Dr. McCoy gave him and others new bulletproof costumes. [New X-Men (2nd series) #42-43]
Indra did not remain the “youngest” mutant for long, as the first mutant baby since M-Day was soon born. The child was coveted by various different groups and, while the bulk of the X-Men's forces were attempting to claim her, their enemies launched another attack on the school. The creatures called Predator X had been created by the X-Men's human enemies in a laboratory. The monstrosities feasted solely on mutant flesh and were very deadly. One of the monsters nearly devoured Indra during the assault on the school. The terrified teen begged for his life but he had a savior in his classmate, Surge, who had become the de facto “den mother” of the remaining students and used her electrical powers to repel Predator X. [New X-Men (2nd series) #46]
The baby (later named Hope) was taken to the future by Cable to be raised to adulthood. Meanwhile, Cyclops opted to close the Xavier Institute, recognizing it was simply too dangerous a location at this point. He relocated to San Francisco with the bulk of the remaining mutant population, Indra included. Eventually, they used the remnants of Asteroid M as a new base of operations, which was now floating just off San Francisco. [X-Men: Manifest Destiny #2]
Life as a teenage mutant remained dangerous, even in San Francisco. The X-Men drew the ire of Norman Osborn, who had assumed and rebranded S.H.I.E.L.D. as H.A.M.M.E.R. He had his forces attack San Francisco in an attempt to detain the X-Men and their allies. Indra was alone when he was confronted by one of their agents. In the moment of danger, his survival instinct overtook him and he defended himself and escaped. [X-Men: Legacy (1st series) #226] While the X-Men ultimately prevailed against Osborn and his forces in the short term, Indra struggled in the aftermath. He followed a path of non-violence and even an act of self-defense in his mind was effectively “sinful.” Rogue had been appointed as an interim “counselor” for the younger mutants and went to Indra, who had been isolating himself since the incident. She engaged him in a philosophical discussion and tried to assure him that the world was simply testing his belief systems as he was entering adulthood. A test she believed he had passed, even though he felt he had failed. As she left, she offered to be there for him if he wished to talk again. [X-Men: Legacy Annual #1]